Conventionally, longarm quilting machines come equipped with a sewing machine head (also referred to as a “sewing head”), a worktable, several fabric rollers, and a metal frame. Typically, overall dimensions of a longarm quilting machine can range from about ten to about fourteen feet in length by two-and-a-half to four feet in depth. A stitchable material can be stretched over the worktable for stitchable engagement with the sewing head. The sewing head typically includes a hopping foot which holds down the stitchable material. The hopping foot height can be adjusted up and down to accommodate the thickness of the stitchable material stretched over the worktable. The sewing head further includes a needle drive mechanism which generates sufficient movement in a needle to stitchably engage a thread with the stitchable material. The hopping foot travels over the stitchable material as the needle stitchably engages the thread with the stitchable material to form stitches in a desired stitch pattern. The sewing head can further include a long arm having a configuration which can be hand guided to direct travel of the needle and hopping foot in relation to the stitchable material. Conventional longarm quilting machines may further provide handles coupled to the long arm for grippable engagement by the operator. While there are numerous and varied manufacturers and models of longarm quilting machines, there remain substantial unresolved problems in hand guiding the long arm to generate travel of the hopping foot and needle in relation to the stitchable material.
A first substantial problem in guiding the hopping foot and needle in relation to the stitchable material can be that the mass of the sewing machine head including the mass of the hopping foot, needle drive mechanism, and long arm can gather substantial linear momentum as the operator guides the hopping foot and needle over the stitchable material by forcibly urging the long arm in a particular direction. The linear momentum in the sewing machine head can make change of direction in the hopping foot and needle difficult and accordingly it can be difficult to achieve certain stitched patterns in the stitchable material.
Another substantial problem in guiding the hopping foot and needle in relation to the stichable material can be that conventional placement of the operator's hands on the long arm, or handles coupled to the long arm, can be a substantial distance from the hopping foot and needle which actually stitchably engages the stitchable material. The operator responds to perceptual-motor cues in interaction with the long arm rather than perceptual-motor cues in interaction with the hopper foot and needle. These indirect perceptual-motor cues from the long arm can be difficult to cognitively weigh to achieve desired travel of the hopping foot and needle in relation to the stitchable material.
Another substantial problem in guiding the sewing machine head in relation to the stichable material can be that conventional placement of the operator's hands on the long arm, or handles coupled to the long arm, can make difficult visual perception of the location of the hopping foot and needle in relation to the stitchable material.
The inventive sewing head navigator and inventive methods of using the inventive sewing head navigator addresses each of the foregoing problems associated with conventional sewing head guides and conventional methods of guiding a sewing head.